Oral history interview with L.M. Wright Jr., April 1, 1974
Subtitle: interview A-0333-1, Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007)
Contributors: Moye, William T., interviewer; Southern Oral History Program; University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Documenting the American South (Project); University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library
Edition: Electronic ed.
Publisher: University Library, UNC-Chapel Hill
Published: 2008
Place of publication: [Chapel Hill, N.C.]
Language: eng
Subjects: Interviews; Newspaper editors; Politics and government; Business and politics; Race relations; Political aspects; Economic development
Other titles: Interview A-0333-1, Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007); Interview with L.M. Wright Jr., April 1, 1974; Oral histories of the American South.
Description: L. M. Wright worked as a writer and editor for the Charlotte Observer during the late 1950s and early 1960s. His positions afforded him a unique view of the unfolding political landscape in Charlotte, North Carolina, during those tumultuous years. In this interview, Wright speaks at length about the various factors that shaped local politics in Charlotte into the mid-1970s. He begins by addressing the changing role of the Chamber of Commerce in local politics, arguing that over the course of the 1960s its centrality to political developments began to dwindle. Despite the Chamber's dwindling power, however, Wright asserts throughout that business interests, specifically those of the downtown area, continued to play a central role to local politics. Wright describes the role of historically prominent business figures, including the Belk and Ivey families, and their relationship to local politics. In addition, he discusses the role of African American business and political leaders, including Fred Alexander, Kelly Alexander, Reginald Hawkins, and Phil Berry. At several points in the interview, Wright argues that local business leaders were quick to support desegregation in the 1960s because they understood it was in their economic interest to do so. Wright also discusses how desegregation affected local politics in terms of the political affiliations of various precincts and in the process of urban renewal. Throughout the interview, Wright's observations reveal the ways in which local politics intersected with race and economics during an era of political consolidation in Charlotte. Researchers interested in the history and politics of Charlotte will also appreciate Wright's efforts to identify various participants in local politics and the economic and political networks they built.
Notes: Title from menu page (viewed on Nov. 26, 2008).

Interview participants: L.M. Wright Jr., interviewee; Bill Moye, interviewer.

Duration: 01:26:07.

This electronic edition is part of the UNC-Chapel Hill digital library, Documenting the American South.  It is a part of the collection Oral histories of the American South.

Text encoded by Kristin Shaffer.  Sound recordings digitized by Aaron Smithers.

Text (HTML and XML/TEI source file) and audio (MP3); 2 files: ca. 132 kilobytes, 157 megabytes.

Original version: Southern Oral History Program Collection, (#4007), Series A, Southern politics, interview A-0333-1, Manuscripts Department, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Transcribed by Joe Jaros. Original transcript: 34 p.

Funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services supported the electronic publication of this interview.

Mode of access: World Wide Web.

System requirements:  Web browser with Javascript enabled and multimedia player.